Common Core Becomes Touchy Subject for Governors Group

Organization Leaves Education Standards Off Its Meeting's Official Agenda

By

Beth Reinhard

Updated July 11, 2014 7:46 p.m. ET

NASHVILLE, Tenn.—The National Governors Association was one of the founders of Common Core, a set of academic standards aimed at raising student achievement. But as Democratic and Republican governors gathered here for summer meetings, Common Core wasn't on the official agenda, a sign of how the bipartisan idea has become a political minefield.

Three Republican-led states recently abandoned Common Core, concerned that national standards would allow President Barack Obama too much power to affect education policy. They...